Sometimes the blogging world gets noisy. And sometimes you even forget why you blog. And you go to a post where you feel you have held your heart out to the world...painfully so, and you get no comments. And you are disappointed. Even though you know you aren't writing for:
Accolades......Comments......Validation.....and those are all good things, that was never my motivation.
And you read all these wonderful other blogs, and you feel like your voice is just one more and it's not quite as beautiful, as esthetically pleasing....as skillful, as creative....fill in the blank.
A scribbling on a blank piece of paper could save your life, if it is just what you need to hear in that moment.
I have also been mad at the "blogger" platform. Different reasons. All of a sudden my playlist didn't work. It won't start playing right when you open my blog. I thought I had it set up to do so, but I still can't get it to work right.
When I noticed myself scrolling to comments right away? That's when I knew I had lost my way. I needed to remember Who I was blogging for and why I started in the first place.
Only three reasons, but they are big ones. God, the Word, and You the readers.
I have been going through some changes myself, and no doubt this blog will change with me. Change is a good thing. But the one thing about this blog that will never change is the message. It is a little four letter word but it means the world.....and it's what the world needs right now:
Hope.
And I realized another thing. My little voice means something, and so does yours.
And after all, how many voices are too many for praise to the living God?
This year has been tough, and it still is. Going on two years of care taking and it takes its toll no doubt about it. But Elaine and I are still laughing despite the circumstances. And now I am going through some other things personally, physical changes which I have talked about here.
And even when the moods are incredibly dark? The amazing thing is that at unexpected moments I have this absurd joy. It just won't stop, because God has me. And He has you too, no matter what else is going on in your life. Because each and every one of us has circumstances we have to deal with. Those will never go away.
But neither will God.
That, my friends is my main message. And this morning, as if to highlight what I was feeling, this song came on and it said: Let my life song sing to you.
Let my life song sing to you. And you and you.
And like those stones along the road to Jerusalem that would not be silent? I will never ever stop praising Him, because He is worthy.
Hi Lori,
ReplyDeleteI have struggled with the same issues with the blog, and comments and all. Praise God, I am growing in this area, but it sure is there. We must keep focused on the real reason we blog, and you got it right. There are a lot of people out there who need to hear the message of Jesus Christ. Of course, we also are blessed to have the opportunity to encourage and bless other believers. I have always enjoyed and been blessed reading your blog.
BTW, I took a blogging break earlier this year which lasted about 6 months. One of the reasons was because I forgot why I blog. But I believe Jesus called me to this, and I could not walk away from blogging.
God bless,
Ken
Oh Ken, your words are so true. We need to pull away sometimes in life and everything else just to remember in the silence, and then we can hear His voice, and we are all just praising Him, everyone in their own way, and it is beauty. Your blog is such a blessing, and you have such rich insight.....Thank you friend, Lori
ReplyDeleteLori-
ReplyDeleteI'm almost giggling because I was thinking the same stuff about my own blog yesterday. I was really thinking of just stopping, but continuing to read my friends' blogs. I felt like I had said everything (in my case-way too much) that I would ever need to say, taken all the pictures I could possibly take-and most importantly-gone to the 'Stats' button for the umpteenth time to see how many people came to MY BLOG. Ugh. If nothing else, for me, blogging has shown me I am still playing show and tell. I haven't grown up much...
But the point you make is so important. We don't know about the silent readers that come to our blogs-that need to have that Word that's not ours, but His.
And because your own blog Lori, has touched my life in some important ways, I could go out in my little world and be a better person to the people I see-perhaps in a way that affected how they lived their lives-made it better-but it started from you. I'm sayin'-it can happen.
I'm GLAD you are back.
Love, Debra
Lori,
ReplyDeleteThere isn't much else I can add here that hasn't been said so sincerely and eloquently by you, Ken and Debra. I stopped blogging for a month this past summer, thinking what else could I add to what everyone else was saying, and so much better at that? And I was THIS CLOSE yesterday to just shelving everything. Comments -- right there with you. And I feel awful when I read a blog (like yours) and fail to leave a comment. Very often, I'm moved, but just don't know what to say other than a heartfelt 'thank you.'
I know that God has called me to write for Him, and He has gifted me with this blog to do so. But speaking strictly for myself here, I feel I must retake this to prayer, get my priorities straight, etc. I feel like I've become too obsessed with my blog to the point of letting things lapse around my home, spending less time with family and friends. I believe I've stopped listening to God's voice, telling me to write, and am listening to my own instead, pushing me to compete, self-promote and be more concerned with 'the numbers' more and the message less.
I'm glad you are back, Lori. Your blog has been an encouragement to me, and I'm sorry I don't always take the time to let you know this. And....thanks for making me feel that I'm not alone.
Blessings,
Pam